September 4, 2012

4:58 CT: Just setting up a post, to be added to over the course of the evening. Please join the conversation.

6:53 (I'm beginning with recorded material from about 2 hours ago. I'll be catching up.): "Being asked to pay your fair share isn't class warfare. It's patriotism," says Newark Mayer Cory Booker. He gets a huge ovation that turns into a "U.S.A." chant. They're "U.S.A."ing at the idea of patriotism, presumably. Not taxes. Oh, but paying taxes = patriotism. Or, specifically, being asked to pay is patriotism. Who is the patriot in that grammatical construction? I think it's the folks who are asking other people to pay.

7:11 (Still catching up.): Gov. Bev Perdue sounded hoarse and a bit sick as she vowed to deliver North Carolina to the Democrats. A film about health care. A young man whose parents died in a way that supposedly might have been avoided if we'd had Obamacare. They were both scientists, he says, so I'm not clear why they did not have health insurance.

7:19: The chair of the Congressional Hispanic Congress, Charles Gonzales, uses the motto "e pluribus unum" — out of many, one — to mean that all the people become one, instead of the idea that the states were brought together into one nation. The idea that the people merged into a single entity — that sounds like fascism to me. Oddly, as it repurposes the old motto, it expresses the old fashioned idea of the melting pot.

7:30: White males of the gubernatorial kind — Quinn & Kaine.

7:32: A black speaker wedged in — the mayor of Charlotte — before the next pale male. But it's a big one, so I'll go light on the fast-forwarding I'm using to try to catch up to live. It's Harry Reid.

7:36: Reid wants us to fear the Tea Party. They are "extremists and ideologues who leave no room for reason," and they're taking over the Republican Party.

7:42: Nancy Pelosi is introduced along with all the Democratic women of the House. There's disco music playing. The hell? Then I detect that it's "I'm Every Woman." Again with this creepy merging of individuals into the whole.

I'm every woman, it's all in me
Anything you want done, baby
I'll do it naturally
I'm every woman, it's all in me
I can read your thoughts right now
Every one from A to Z

See what I mean? That's creepy when it's the government. When it's some lady you're having sex with, I guess it's sexy.

I can cast a spell
With secrets you can't tell
Mix a special brew
Put fire inside of you
But anytime you feel
Danger or fear
Instantly I will appear, 'cause
I'm every woman

Now, that's just scary when it's a whole horde of government women coming at you. What is this "special brew"? Soma? But anytime you feel/Danger or fear/Instantly I will appear... Nancy Pelosi will appear?! I can sense your needs/Like rain on to the seeds/I can make a rhyme/Of confusion in your mind... no, no, no, no that's not what I want to hear from the government!

8:03: Speaking of scary... it's Jimmy Carter (on film). He's well made-up, well preserved, and well modulated. But he seems like a nice man, there, doesn't he? And he tells us Barack Obama and Joe Biden will lead us to a better future.

8:18: Huge storm here! We just lost power for a few minutes. I lost a whole paragraph of snark about Teddy Kennedy. A young Kennedy — Joseph P. Kennedy III, running for Congress — said the spirit of Teddy was with us here today. I had some prime snark! Did Teddy bring this terrible storm that drowned all my Mary Jo Kopechne material?

8:25: NARAL! It's Nancy Keenan, for "safe, legal" abortions, with "dignity and privacy." A woman should not be forced to have an ultrasound "against her will." And "rape is rape." President Obama had "the courage to stand with Sandra Flook" (is that how we're pronouncing it now?). "Women in America cannot trust Mitt Romney."

8:33: I've caught up to Rahm Emanuel. "The American auto industry is not just surviving..." Hmm. He professes to know with "absolute certainty" that something will happen in the future and "land with a thud on the Oval Office desk." Who do you want there? He's saying that like it's obvious.

8:45: I'm finally completely caught up. Lily Ledbetter is speaking. This is the question of "equal pay for equal work," but the Supreme Court case she lost was a matter of interpreting statutory language about how soon you need to bring a lawsuit. I feel sorry for her, but I'm also uneasy about her as an icon representing things that are not what the court case was about.

8:48: Deval Patrick, the governor of Massachusetts, is able to compare himself to Romney, who was, a while back, the governor of Massachusetts. He's yelling and screaming about the economy. Obama has been wonderful!!!

8:53: "I will not stand by and let him be bullied out of office!" Patrick propaganda.

8:55: Wow, everyone looks really sweaty. Did the AC break down?

9:03: Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley. I have no idea why this man has been given this prominence. Here's his question for Republicans: "How much less do you really think would be good for this country?"

9:07: Time for the keynote address at last. It's Julian Castro, the mayor of San Antonio.

9:17: Castro seems like he could have been a speaker at last week's GOP convention. He keeps talking about "hard work" and even "rugged individualism." But then he says "Like many of you, I watched last week's Republican convention, and they told a few stories of individual success. We all celebrate individual success, but the question is: How do we multiply that success? The answer is President Barack Obama."

9:22: Castro gets a refrain going: "Mitt Romney says no."

10:00: Michelle Obama is wearing an orange dress that in the close-up looks like a bathing suit. Lots of shoulder and arm display. Her speech goes on and on, filled with stuff that has no relationship to the question of whether Barack Obama should be reelected. He thinks his little girls are important and he's proud of them and eats dinner with them and counsels them about their middle-school friendships. Okay. I phase out. What's the point of all this? Then — this seems near the end — she starts doing this fake stuttering (as if she's talkin' 'bout my g-g-g-g-generation): "A-a-and he reminds me, he reminds me that we are playing a long game here..." (Meade says: "Not 9 holes, it's 18 holes.") "A-a-a-and that change is hard. A-a-a-and change is slow and it never happens all at once but that eventually we get there. We always do. W-w-w-w-we get there, because of folks like my dad." (Earlier in the speech she described her father.) "Folks like Barack's grandmother. Men and women who-who said to themselves, I-I may not have a chance to fulfill my dreams, but maybe my children will, maybe my grandchildren will. See-see-see, so many of us stand here tonight because of their sacrifice...." Arghhhh! This is the same thing we heard last week. It's so earnest. Stage-y earnest. But what does it say? Who should be President?!

10:16: Michelle's speech goes on a long time. I don't really see the point of it. There's a theme of waiting patiently with the expectation that our children or their children will have a better life, but what does that mean for the election? It seems to say that we should reelect Obama despite the lack of economic progress. She speaks of "unwavering hope grounded in unyielding struggle." Now there's this choked-up quality in her voice as she says she's "Mom-in-Chief," doing what's "best for our girls." It's getting very hammy. Vote for my husband. That's the end. And then the music comes up: "Move your body... move your little hips...." What?!

10:26: An unusually young woman comes out to do the closing prayer, and it goes on for almost 4 minutes. "As a young woman of faith and a leader...." Who is she? The executive director of Blood: Water Mission. I don't really understand what that is — and I did Google it — so I'm left assuming that the Democrats are simply hot to reach out to young women.

Patrick, the wedding was GREAT! Weather a bit warm for a reception in the Olin Park Pavillion, no air conditioning, Madison traffic was insane, because of the Taste of Madison and first Badger game of the season, but all went well. My daughter and new son in law are off for Costa Rica, I begged, but they wouldn't take me along;(

I'm also waiting for the MSM to point out the irony in requiring photo IDs for anyone attending the convention, PLUS people passing through or living in the neighborhood. I suspect I'll be waiting a long time.

"I'm also waiting for the MSM to point out the irony in requiring photo IDs for anyone attending the convention, PLUS people passing through or living in the neighborhood. I suspect I'll be waiting a long time."

That's a drinking game an alcoholic in recovery, enrolled in AA, can play without risk of falling off the wagon: Drink every time the media highlights the Democrat ID hypocrisy: required to attend their pissant celebration of their failed, affirmative action president, NOT REQUIRED to vote.

"Conservative former Rep. Virgil Goode will appear on Virginia's presidential ballot after state election officials rejected a Republican-led effort to keep him off. Republicans fear Goode will drain votes from their candidate, Mitt Romney, in a swing state where polls show a deadlocked race."

>

Chippy, it's obvious I bug the shit out of you. Hey, at least you're not constipated! take care

"The Obama campaign have been working desperately to ensure that the 74,000-seater Bank of America stadium in Charlotte would be filled.

Buses for students from across North Carolina and even members of black churches in neighboring South Carolina have been arranged."

And Obama's big speech might be moved from the stadium into a smaller 20,000 seat venue, because of the weather.

Yes, what a great idea to hold the convention in an outdoor venue. Rain in NC is unheard of at this time of year. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2198206/Democrats-set-Obamas-big-speech-74-000-seater-outdoor-stadium-20-000-seater-indoor-arena.html#ixzz25XxyhJRt

By way of his Dunham lineage, President Obama has at least 11 direct ancestors who took up arms and fought for American independence in the Revolutionary War and two others cited as patriots by the Daughters of the American Revolution for furnishing supplies to the colonial army. This star-spangled heritage makes Obama eligible to join the Sons of the American Revolution, and his daughters the Daughters of the American Revolution.

If you can't bear to watch it yourself, hustle on over to www. hillbuzz.org where Kevin DuJan is liveblogging. Gutbustingly funny.Ann Althouse: You'd like this guy. He is not only hilarious, he's also a brilliant strategic thinker (former Hillary democrat).

I am watching the convention on MSNBC. I am staring the crazy right in the face. When all this is discussed later, I want to be able to participate and know what I'm talking about, not just repeating what the righty blogs told me.

Fact Check: Despite all the references to ObamaCare being the fulfillment of Teddy Kennedy's dreams, it is not universal health care. The Supreme Court ruling struck down forcing the states to cover the uninsured, thus after all the shouting, 30 million people remain uninsured, just as before the takeover of health care.

Shiloh: It is generally considered good manners not to try and step on the other party's convention. This year, the Obama campaign broke that tradition. So, maybe Romney is holding his powder for his counter-ad blitz now that his war chest is freed up.

How lame is it to keep quoting a racist, corrupt, failed candidate for POTUS who had to be bought off so the second-most corrupt Administration in American history had a chance of winning?

btw, when Obama wins what will be the main con whine/excuse?

He won't. They can't even fill the stadium, so they've got to use an indoor arena seating 1/3 the people.

Lol that one.

Voter fraud?

Isn't that the only way the demos ever win?

mittens was a train wreck?

Ho, that's Choom. Hopenchair, after all.

Not enough con billionaire $$$ lol

Dr Evil has abandoned Little Zero, so the money problems are all on the Demos' side.

Projection, it's not just from Sony anymore.

Real men don't ride a bicycle in Paris doing "missionary work" to avoid the Vietnam War. A war mittens was totally in favor of everyone else fighting except himself!

And what was the little animal's excuse for not going?

He's a Boomer, but he waited until it was safe - or, at least, that's what he expects us to believe.

btw, real men don't waste time at political blogs! Even for amusement.

Yet here he writes. Or has it written for him so he can type it.

Conservative former Rep. Virgil Goode will appear on Virginia's presidential ballot after state election officials rejected a Republican-led effort to keep him off. Republicans fear Goode will drain votes from their candidate, Mitt Romney, in a swing state where polls show a deadlocked race.

Oh, yes. Puffington analysis. Yeah, that'll work.

(8) years of Bush begat Barack Hussein Obama

And 4 years of Choom will beget 16 years of Republican Presidents. Maybe 20?

Matthew, laying low is mittens best option to be sure as he doesn't wear well in puplic ie he won the Rep primary by runnin' 95% negative ads against his train wreck opposition and it's his only pathway to victory in the general.

If you pay more than that, you're paying "more than your fair share". If you pay less, you're paying "less than your fair share". I pay around three times my fair share, if I recall correctly. It may be more.

Of course, an argument can be made that the well-off should be made to pay MORE than their fair share because they are able to afford it. But honesty compels us to admit that they are paying "more than their fair share" of taxes.

What do they consider a "fair" share? Currently, Americans are taxed at a rate exceeding 50% of income. This does not include the employer share. This also does not include the effective tax levied on everyone when the federal government runs a perpetual deficit equal to 10% of GDP.

I wonder how they consider direct investments in the American economy and charitable interests.

Along with their statement which subordinates individual dignity to the state (or collective), their message should not resonate with Americans. In fact, it should be repulsive to Americans. It strictly contradicts the principles upon which this nation was founded.

Anyway, Democrats have evolved to replace slavery and discrimination with progressive involuntary exploitation and an institutional class system. The semantics have changed, but they remain true to their principles. However, most important, they offer no sustainable solutions to resolve problems which they have manufactured.

Mitt Romney was really pro choice a little bit ago. Actually he was big fag hag and healthcare for all lover and climate change supporter. He really isn't the republicans fave and best candidate. He even said he never wanted to go back to the Reagan years-and he still made it through the primaries. And he is from Massachusetts....amazing.

I think it would be fair to tax the rich more in exchange for the poor not having children outside marriage and putting all welfare programs on the same 5 year limit as TANF. I also think the federal government should condition its funding of primary and secondary education on states banning public unions for teachers. The problem with the Dems is they expect nothing from the peoPle who make up their base.

What sort of people are these, that get themselves worked into a lather and cheer enthusiastically for abortion, labor unions, and higher taxes?

How pathetic and powerless these people must be in their everyday lives, that they celebrate the power of life and death that they hold over the least powerful, unborn infants; while covetously conspiring to hamstring success with union thuggery and confiscatory taxation.

This is too depressing to watch. These people make me embarrassed to belong to the same species.

I like what Duckworth said up to "Barack Obama will never ignore our troops..."

Only if you don't count the theater commander in Afghanistan as a "troop." Obama managed to ignore him for months.

Romney isn't a strong "defense" or "military" person, other than having executive experience. So between him and Obama it's probably a wash. What he's done is all the normal things that anyone would have done.